Evening capital. (Annapolis, Md.) 1884-1910, 1887-02-09
FIRsr eArrLg OF sulL RuN.
A Michigan Volunteer Tells the story Of
the Famous Panic and Stampede.

a Michigan Volunteer Tells the story OF
the Famous Panic and Stampede.
The attempt to stop the retreat oc-
CURED at a causeway about two miles
north of Centreville had been sent as
a courier from Blackburn ford to Centre
vile, and the panic swept me along with
the rest. / was only a kid of boy, 10
years old, and bandmaster, who wanted
to reach Washington sooner than any
one else, pulled me of my horse and left
me to plod my way on foot. AT least
5000 panicstriclzen soldiers had passed
along ahead of me.
We were in horrible confusion, some
mounted, some afoot, and ambulances,
baggage wagons, army teams and pri-
vate carriages pushing along as fast as
possible, when | jumped into an army
wagon to which was attached four
horses. The driver was in his saddle on
the nigh wheel horse, and seemed to be
taking the matter very coolly, but had
scarcely got into the vehicle when there
was shout of ''rebel cavalryl" all along
the road, and the teamster was hard
struck by it. He got down and began to
cut one of the leaders loose, and got
down and took the other, leaving the
wagon and the wheel horses at the side
of the road. / stripped Off everything
but the bride, and had scarcely mounted
when a corporal handed me up two large
cans of chicken, which had come from
wagon filed with hospital stores. As
had a can under each arm, could not
guide the horse, but he trotted along in
the crowd for half a mile until, as we
Ix>I 1,sl Il 81. n -
causcway, a carriage turned around
across the road, and six or eight men in
line in front of the carriage. Not catch
ing on to what was up, ard still holding
to the cans, my horse kept his place until
Zach Chandler seized him by the bits and
called out to me:
'sYoung man, take that horse back
over the hill; he belongs to the govern
ment. /"
saw guns in the hands of the citizens,
heard them shouting and swearing at the
soldiery, and then let fall the cans and
turned the horse around. had not gone
200 feet when there was great shout,
and / looked around to see the valiant
congressman driving north at full speed.
Their effort TO stop the retreat didn't last
five minutes. AS they sprang into their
carriage the soldiers seized the wheels to
hold them, and two or three attempted to
secure free ride. The New jersey regi-
ment occupied the causeway, but opened
ranks to let the tide through, and many
of the men flung down their muskets and
joined in the flight.
On three different occasions after 1862
/ met Mr.. Chandler, and recalled the in
cident and he agreed with me in every
detail. The man who accidently shot
Mai. Eaton was the teamster who had
given me one of his horses. We rode the
pair through to Washington side by side.
One who remembers that panic viii
laugh at the idea of five or six citizens
seeking to check it. Had there been a
brigade of troops across the highway it
could not have held The frightened tide
five minutes. Had Chandler, Wade and
their crowd delayed another minute they
would have been tramped into the earth.
Every man felt tlast he was being pur-
sued for his life, and when commissioned
officers were tearing off their insignia of
rank, f1inging away their side arms and
warning all around them to hurry, what
could be expected of the private soldier?
/ am sorry that Ben Wade didn't cut
heroic figure at that causeway to make
up for the slip three or four miles away
earlier in the day. As rode short cut
to find my regiment, a solid shot passed
near me, smashed an ambulance and tore
the splinters from a beach tree. Bull
Run Russell, Wade, Chandler and other
civilians were just beyond, and the way
they got up and left that section of Vir-
ginia was laughable to see. / got four
or five pages of Russell's manuscript, a
cane belonging to some congressman, and
could have gathered up two or three plug
hats and museum Of TASKS and luncheon
baskets
The congressional crowd went out to
see the Confederates get licked. When
they found that the boot was on the other
foot every man Of EN- was as panic
stricken as the youngest soldier, and IN
stead Of playing the heroic, except in the
one instance mentioned, they were wSsll-
ing for wings to fly to Washington.
Volunteer, First Michigan Infantry IN
New York Sun.